Diaspora Matters

The last time your favourite forum tackled business in DRC, we mainly concentrated on an interview from a ZBIN official contact who is based in Kinshasa, Ms Nothando Mpofu and she gave you important information about DRC. A number of Zimbabweans are already in DRC especially professionals such as engineers. The interview is very important for any member interested in travelling to DRC and not have sufficient information. We urge you to go to our search page and look for it. On the forum we also posted a market survey done by ZIMTRADE which looks at opportunities in the resource rich country.

Today we feature another DRC article and look at the big picture or helicopter view of the DRC and this information is sourced from www.export.gov

Last Published: 8/8/2016

• The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DRC) rich endowment of natural resources, large population, and strategic location in Central Africa make it a potentially rewarding market for U.S. companies. However, the DRC’s commercial and investment climate remains challenging.
• Following decades of economic instability due to fiscal mismanagement, corruption and conflict, the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (GDRC) implemented economic reforms aimed at creating sustainable growth, controlling inflation, maintaining the stability of the macroeconomic framework, reducing the weight of external debt and rehabilitating infrastructure.  GDRC efforts from 2001 to 2014 yielded some improvement, but significant challenges remain.
• The DRC’s economy returned to growth in 2010 following a significant economic slowdown in 2008 and 2009 as a result of the global financial crisis.  Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth more than doubled from 2.9 percent in 2009 to 7.1 percent in 2010.  By 2014, GDP growth reached 8.9 percent, before declining to 7.7 in 2015.   Lower commodity prices and exports reduced projected growth for 2016 to around 5 percent.
• Fiscal reforms implemented in 2015 helped stabilize inflation and the Congolese Franc (CDF), keeping inflation below 2 percent despite drops in commodity prices.  Between 2011 and 2015, the CDF held steady against the dollar, trading at roughly USD 1 to CDF940.  The CDF began to lose ground against the dollar in April 2016 and traded at CDF958 per USD 1 in June 2016.  The DRC reached the Highly-Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) completion point in 2010, having implemented necessary policy measures (“triggers”). HIPC debt relief alleviates over USD 11 billion of the DRC’s external debt burden, freeing resources for spending on priority programs.
• The DRC’s primary sectors, agriculture and natural resources, collapsed during the civil war years of the 1990s, but have seen a strong recovery over the past decade. Today, economic growth in the DRC is driven mostly by extractive industries, followed by manufacturing, public works, and agriculture.  A substantial portion of the DRC’s economic activities are dominated by the informal sector.  According to a 2012 study by the National Institute of Statistics, the DRC’s informal sector represents 88.6 percent of total economic activity.  The DRC’s manufacturing industry all but disappeared in the 1990s during the final years of Mobutu Sese Seko’s rule.  Most consumer goods are imported, largely from China, which account for nearly a quarter of all imports.
• The country has three main economic hubs focused around large population centers with large commercial or industrial bases.  These are:
• The provinces of Kinshasa and Kongo Central, formerly the province of Bas Congo: Kinshasa is the DRC’s most populous city and its political and economic capital.  Kinshasa is home to both the seat of government and the headquarters of the vast majority of agencies and institutions.  It is a vibrant economic hub; most foreign companies operating in the DRC maintain a presence in Kinshasa; Congolese businesses tend to have their corporate headquarters in the city.  Kinshasa is the third largest city on the African continent, with an estimated population of over 5.5 million inhabitants in the city and 10 million in its urban agglomeration.  Kongo Central borders Kinshasa province’s western flank; to the south, Kongo Central shares a border with Angola and to the North, with the Republic of Congo.  Kongo Central is the only province in the DRC with direct access to the sea.  Matadi, approximately 170 miles (273km) southeast of Kinshasa, is the capital and largest city in the province, and is home to the only seaport in the country.  Kinshasa and Matadi are connected by a meter gauge portage railway that recently underwent substantial overhauls as well as a paved two-lane road.  Though the Congo River flows between Kinshasa and Matadi, the stretch connecting the two is unnavigable.
• Haut-Katanga and Lulabala provinces: These two provinces form the southern economic hub. Haut-Katanga and Lulabala provinces occupy the southern half of the former Katanga province bordering Angola and Zambia.  Lubumbashi, Congo’s second largest city is located on one of the world’s largest copper deposits.  Today, the region is home to numerous domestic and internationally owned mines.  Unlike Kinshasa, Lubumbashi and a number of other key cities in the Lulabala and Haut-Katanga provinces are connected to the southern African rail network.
• North Kivu, South Kivu, Ituri, Bas Huele, Haut Huele, and Tshopo provinces:  This area of economic activity, from the cities of Bukavu and Goma on the Rwandan border, to the river port city of Kisangani to the West and the gold mines in Bas Huele and Ituri, forms the third economic hub of the region.  The area faces a chronic instability, the by-product of a continuing low-intensity conflict between various armed factions fighting the GDRC, each other, and cross border attacks from Rwanda.  Despite difficult conditions, the region is home to a number of industrial and artisanal mines extracting cobalt, gold, and diamonds, as well as an agricultural sector that is increasingly exporting its products.
• The DRC seeks to promote and participate in regional integration and trade.  The GDRC is a member of the African Union, Southern African Development Community, Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, Economic Community of Central African States. Organization for the Harmonization of African Business Law, and the Economic Community of the Great Lakes Countries.

Key economic indicators: Economic growth Rate:

Official Inflation Rate:

• Official Exchange rate (Central Bank of Congo): CDF 957.79  USD 1 (from June 2016)
• Income per capita: USD 442.3 (2014)

Real GDP based on 2013 (in billions USD):

Exports (in millions USD):

Imports (in millions USD):

Main export markets 2015:

• China: 43.1%
• Zambia: 24.9%
• European Union: 21.3% (Belgium: 8.3%)
• South Africa: 7.7%

Main import markets in 2015

• European Union: 23.1% (Belgium 6.9 %)
• China: 17.7%
• South Africa: 20.9%
• Zambia: 12.3%
• United States: 3.3%

Major Competitors in the DRC market by sector:

• India and Pakistan- Banking, Pharmaceutical Products, Consumer Products, and General Trade National Association of Manufacturers (NAM)
• France- Petroleum
• China- Civil Engineering and Infrastructure Development, Mining
• United States- Mining
• South Africa- Telecommunications Sector, Mining, Pharmaceutical Research, and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA)
• Japan- Export of Vehicles
• Lebanon- General Trade, Restaurant Business, Housing

Top five reasons to export to the DRC:

1. The DRC’s GDP recorded steady growth  of above 7 percent on an annual basis for the past three years, helping to engender a growing consumer class;
2. The Congolese hold a high opinion of U.S. products and services, particularly in terms of the quality to price ratio;
3. The DRC is undertaking multibillion dollar programs to rehabilitate various sectors, including agriculture, energy, construction, basic infrastructure, and transportation;
4. The DRC Government is working to improve the business climate and is looking to facilitate foreign trade and investment;
5. The DRC possesses natural resource deposits with an estimated value of USD 24 trillion

The Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises and Cooperatives Development has come up with an excellent initiative of an Indian-Africa Incubation Centre based in Waterfalls, Harare. The initiative seeks to accelerate the development of startups and fledging MSMEs by providing entrepreneurs with an array of targeted resources and services. The main goal is to produce successful MSMEs that will leave the program financially viable and free standing. Incubator graduates will have the potential to create jobs, revitalize neighborhoods, commercialize new technologies and strengthen local and national economies.

The incubator center will provide management guidance, mentoring, technical assistance, equipment and consulting tailored to start ups and existing MEMEs for varying periods of time ranging from 3 months to 18 months. Trainees will be equipped with both technical and business management skills during the incubation period.

Call for Applicants

The incubation Centre will be housing 25 different manufacturing technologies. Applications are invited from individuals with a passion for enterpreneurship who are university or ollege graduates, school leavers or dro outs who wish to be incubated in any of the following areas:

If you have the drive, passion and the energy to defy conventional practice this program is for you. Please send your application indicating your area of interest to:

The Director Technical Services

Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises and Cooperative Development

Private Bag 7740, Causeway, Harare

Or

Hand deliver to:

6^th Floor, Liquenda House

No 58-60

Corner N Mandela/First Street, Harare

Deadline: 26 May 2017

For more information regarding the above program call Mr Musimeki 0772 639879/04-741643

We have a request from one of our members who has just opened a tuckshop . She is looking for tips on how to successfully run her tuckshop since she is a first timer. In this part 1, we are going to look at strategic issues she needs to consider before plunging head on into the tuckshop business. In part 2, we will cover operational issues for consideration.

Our analysis is going to look at Macro Economic issues, Regulatory Environment and People. First we would like to congratulate her on the journey she has decided to embark upon. ZBIN will do its best to assist by providing business advice and mentorship, checklists and a lot of resources so as to assist her and others in the same boat.

Macro-Economic Issues

It is important to look at the performance of the Economy, for instance we are currently facing liquidity challenges and this has an impact on accessibility of capital and credit, the ability of customers to purchase goods and services. In investment one will however need to look at the long term horizon and see beyond current challenges. Understanding the current macro-economic conditions will help you to plan and make informed decisions. Look at opportunities presented by the imports ban and how it helps local businesses and then plan to take advantage. We recommend having a business plan to help you in the assessment of the macro-economic conditions and the opportunities and risks it poses to business.

Regulatory Environment

You will need all relevant permits in order to address your biggest risk. We have uploaded on our site a shop licence application form for your benefit. Download it from our site or alternatively visit the Harare City Council website www.hararecity.co.zw and check out the resources menu. If you do not have all the required permits then expect a lot of disturbances from Council Inspectors with some asking you to pull down your structure.

People: Competition

You have to do an analysis of the current level of competition. Who are your competitors? What is it that they are doing well? What needs to be improved or what is the gap? You are entering the field because you have identified a gap that needs to be filled. Do not simply dive into the business for the sake of it. You need to identify an opportunity and this becomes your competitive advantage. Is the nearby shopping centre located far away? Are there no current tuckshops in your area? If yes, are the tuckshops offering poor customer service? Or current tuckshops do not stock all food stuffs? A good analysis of the present competition should help inform your decision making. In business you have to compete and the higher the profits, the stiffer the competition. Even after establishment do expect to see more entrants into the field trying to get a piece of the profits.

People: Customers

I was surprised by the number of shoppers during the Easter Holidays, shops such as OK, TM and Choppies registered high sales. A look at their recent financial results do show increased business by retailers. When other business sectors are registered losses or a decline in profits for the retailers profits are on a northward trajectory…it is all good for this sector at least for now. So choosing to open a tuckshop is one of the wisest things one can ever do. Iam also finalising a personal venture of a retail shop and will share my results in the coming months. So when it comes to customers, one need not worry much-there is appetite to buy goods especially food and this is likely to remain in the medium term.

What is going to be crucial is how to manage customers-excellent customer care which is characterised by knowing what customers want, who are the customers, changing in tastes, times customers buy, handling complaints from customers as well as making customers happy. Exceptional customers result in profits…a happy customer means more business and more business is profit. You will need to analyse current customer services from your competition and come up with a plan that provides your tuckshop with a competitive advantage.

People: Suppliers

Your business plan should identify your key suppliers. You need to identify the goods that you would like to trade- goods in demand such as bread, milk and eggs. You need to establish who will be your key suppliers of the goods and establish good relations with them. As a first time operator you need to develop trust and this can only be done if you settle your accounts timeously. You will have to be innovative with procurements and establish close relations with suppliers who import goods but make sure that they are not smuggled goods.

People: Employees

Iam not sure whether you will be the person running the business or you will have to hire someone to run the tuckshop on your behalf. Whoever it is, this person is going to be the face of your tuckshop. This is the person who can make or break your business. It starts with customer service-the smiles to customers, integrity-the honesty even when customers forget change, the proactiveness in responding to customer needs. This person needs to have some training and also reviews because any lapse in concentration can result in loss of business to competitors. In our follow up article we will provide more resources and checklists on the management of this area. In your business plan you should also have included a budget of salaries and benefits for this person because if you  do not pay  your employees well, chances are high that they make resort to ‘paying themselves from the tuckshop coffers’.

So we have looked at some of the big issues to critically analyse before you plunge into this business. There are more areas we have left out such as the location and appearance of the tuckshop, day to day management or operational issues. We have left out latest trends in tuckshop management. We will cover all of these areas in our next article-the good thing is that there are no tuckshops that are closing in Harare and this confirms our view that the demand for food is high and will remain high in the foreseeable future.

Had wanted to share with our Diasporan Community the latest trends in the Real Estate sector, new housing developments from ZIMRE Phase 2, Kadoma City Council and Chimanimani RDC but will shelve it for now and bring it next week.

Let us look at how the Diaspora can invest back home. Iam talking of ‘beyond Real Estate investment’ because there are some who have built homes in the Diaspora and back home and are looking at other investment options outside real estate. Investment on the stock market is one option, in future Diasporan Bonds may be coming and a lot of various investment vehicles for your benefit.

This week allow ZBIN to tackle Tender Opportunities! A lot of opportunities abound in Zimbabwe and one hidden area where you can access these opportunities is through the analysis of Public Tenders! You do not need to go far but just to analyse all tenders that are published in local newspapers.

Here are some of the top tenders in the month of April

1. IT Equipment procurement (including laptops)
2. Vehicle procurement (Toyota 4×4 trucks)
3. Stationery and Printing
4. Construction

A look at 3 of the tenders above shows that the procurements have to be done outside Zimbabwe and in most cases South Africa. The country does not manufacture IT Equipment or vehicles. Most of our stationery requirements are imported therefore the Diaspora should take advantage of this by partnering with locals in tenders.

Who flights tenders in Zimbabwe?

When you look at the macro –economic landscape in Zimbabwe, its easy to say there are no opportunities, there is liquidity challenges, forex challenges and therefore make one quick ill-informed conclusion. You can quickly come to the conclusion that the country has little to no opportunities, but an analysis of this sector shows that various players are involved in flighting tenders and include The Government of Zimbabwe, Parastatals, The NGO sector,  Colleges and Schools, churches and Private Companies and Institutes.

Partnerships and Risks

The issue of trust is definitely high in this business, people have been conned before and the Diaspora community has been a major victim. Trusting someone based locally is a big risk…there are a lot of stories involving relatives who are no longer on talking terms and the reason is abuse of funds! Someone would have been conned by locals….examples include home construction, kombi and trucks businesses. A lot of Diasporans lost funds by partnering with relatives. So if your own brothers and sisters can con you how about partnering with complete strangers?

Proposed Solution

Accounting firms and Legal firms should innovate and come up with programs that address risks where Diasporans and locals are involved in partnerships. Registered Accounting or Legal firms have a reputation to protect; they can be deregistered if they involve themselves in scams. These are the organisations to deal with especially accounting firms that are experts in risk management. ZBIN is therefore challenging all Accounting and Legal firms to come up with Diaspora and Locals Partnership Strategies because the appetite to invest by the Diaspora is high-the only impediment being risk.

So in relation to the tender business the Diaspora may have access to forex resources, access to information of where to source products at competitive rates. He or she is therefore at a competitive advantage compared to someone in Zimbabwe. The Diaspora should therefore form a local company and partner with locals and participate on tenders.

If you are partnering with a local then manage the risk mentioned above get someone that you can trust, form a company and ensure all paperwork is in order and watch closely tenders because this is a multi-million dollar industry. In future it is expected to be a multi-billion industry that will drive the growth of our wonderful nation.

Where do you get tender information when you are the diaspora? You have 2 options, to ask your friends and relatives back home to track them on your behalf or to subscribe to ZBIN as a paid up member. Our paid up members have access to 4 Tender Trackers per month, we also summarise and provide an analysis of tender opportunities every quarter. How much to be a paid up member? Our membership is $10 for six months and includes a host of other benefits such as access to all of our WhatsApp platforms, access to selected business plans, newsletters and free adverts promotion. We have covered before the number of benefits that our registered members enjoy.

ZBIN helps members in many ways, from accessing free resources, free information, access to markets and access to capital. We cover all countries in Southern Africa when it comes to business and investment.

This week we seek to help members and followers with businesses for sale. We have a free service that will help you in selling your businesses. Whether you are in Zomba, Malawi-Tete Mozambique, Durban-South Africa, Maun-Botswana or Chiredzi in Zimbabwe. If you have a business for sale then grab this golden opportunity to list your business on the fastest growing business forum in Southern Africa.

What to do

Fill in the blanks in the table below and submit it to us a completed form to vicmunemo@yahoo.com. We urge you to submit photos of your business if you have any available.

What ZBIN will do

We will actively promote our register of businesses for sale for your benefit.

This manual comes courtesy of the Ministry of Agriculture  Land and Marine Resources, Extension Training and Information Services Division.

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The question of the weekend for our followers is a simple one….Is Chicken Rearing Profitable? Can one make good profits from rearing  chickens especially broilers? Before answering this question lets look at the photo below from Novatek.

The cost of raising a bird is $3.13 per bird and the average selling price per bird is $6 giving us a profit of $2.87 per bird.

Now the above cost of $3.13 has not taken into account the following costs:

1.Labour costs

2.Water and Electricity charges

3.Travel costs

4.Marketing costs

You can add more costs but for now allow us to just add the above 4 costs. If we add labour ($60), Water and Electricity ($20), Transport costs ($10) then the total cost of production shoots up to $4.03 per bird and therefore reducing the profit to $1.97 per bird assuming that there is no loss of birds due to death.

So what does this tell us about rearing broilers in Zimbabwe?

1. It is a profitable business venture provided you have expertise of raising chickens
2. Profitable if you have a ready market
3. Very Profitable if you can push volumes so as to enjoy economies of scale

Reducing Costs

Growing own chicken feed is an option in reducing chicken rearing costs. It can however be tricky as it can affect the rate of growth of chickens. If you are not careful, you may end up spending more than the person buying chicken feed from reputable suppliers. If you have a ready market then this can help in reducing marketing costs as well as travelling or communication costs as you chase up  debtors.

Marketing Chickens

Most people now know how to raise poultry and this is an easy part especially if you raise them over time.  The biggest headache is the market! Finding reliable markets where you sell all of your chickens in bulk is the greatest challenge that farmers face. Most farmers are resorting to selling chickens to individuals on credit and this often brings more problems-people who refuse or fail to pay! Defaulters increase the costs of rearing chickens and thereby reducing the profit per bird.

What is ZBIN doing about Marketing Challenges?

1.You are free to use our adverts section to market your chickens. We do not mind whether you are a ZBIN registered member or not, log in and put your advert. Our Admin team is working hard to promote the page so that it can be viewed by many people as we expand our operations. We have in mind one online Poultry Market for Zimbabwe to help our members to sell or buy chickens.

2. Profitability can be improved if you reduce costs. Members should therefore form consortiums that enable them to sell their chickens in bulk. We will announce an interesting ZBIN innovation to help solve this, a first of its kind in Zimbabwe, we have discussed extensively about this on our group and even held meetings to brainstorm on the feasibility of the initiative.

So there you are poultry farmers, keep watching your costs and becareful of the term ‘profit’ because you may be excluding key costs in your calculations. We also advise our members to be wary of increasing cases of poultry thefts. When your broilers are almost ready for the market, make sure that you increase your security as you may risk losing all of your birds to thieves.

Are you interested in joining our popular ZBIN Poultry Whatsapp Group? If the answer is yes then kindly app me on +263774081808 as i have 10 places available.

So where are most people spending their monies on? The answer is Food, Accomodation, Education, Medical Aid and Transport.  The list can be expanded or reviewed but on average the areas mentioned are where most Zimbos are spending their monies on. For today we can have a look at Pre-Schools, they are increasingly feeling the heat from a new initiative to introduce Grade 0 in all primary schools. Does this mean there is no room for creches? We do not think so provided you do your research and analysis. There is need for innovation  remain in the game and we encourage our members to look at new surbubs cropping up everywhere-these areas provide room for you to set up a Preschool.

We are fortunate to partner with StartupBiz Zimbabwe who can be found on www.startupbiz.co.zw. They have given us a sample business plan to share with our members. For more business plans we urge you to visit their site.

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Rewards and recognition Over the past several years, many countries in developing their diaspora strategies have included a mechanism for formal recognition. While it may be considered unnecessary, an act of recognition or expression of appreciation is likely to ignite a positive reaction from particular segments of the diaspora and would help highlight many of the efforts made on the part of particular individuals or organizations, which can otherwise go unrecognized. Having a mechanism through which to thank diaspora members will potentially increase engagement, raise awareness and generate substantial good will. In short, there is much more upside than downside. Possible systems for reward and recognition include:

The creation of a formal civic honors system, such as the Order of Canada, Legion d’Honneur in France, the Order of Australia, the British Honors List;

Universities acknowledging successful members of the diaspora either in the form of honorary degrees or through appointments as visiting fellows, adjunct faculty members, etc.;

Recognition could come through the network of the home country’s embassies and consulates around the world;

An invitation to a small gathering hosted by a visiting member of the home country’s Government is a form of recognition in and of itself. Diaspora members like to feel that if they are giving of their time and expertise to advise on particular matters a fitting form of acknowledgement is access to Government at senior levels;

Sponsoring trips home to meet domestic companies whom diaspora members could potentially assist is also seen as a form of acknowledgement; or

Membership in some recognized body of advisors, with a working title. Such an appointment suggests that the person is in a privileged position to help homeland companies, agencies, organizations or Government and is an acknowledgement of his/her global expertise.

Examples of recognition systems
Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Awards The Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Awards are an expression of honor by the Government of India to members of the Indian diaspora. The award ceremony has been constituted to acclaim those overseas Indians who have done exceptional work in their chosen field/profession. It has been organized by the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs every year since 2003. Pravasi Bharatiya Samman awards are reserved exclusively for nonresident Indians and persons of Indian origin. The awards are conferred on those overseas Indians who have made an outstanding contribution towards fostering better understanding abroad of India and its civilization; for persons who have extended their support to India’s causes and concerns; and for those who made her proud by brilliant performance in their field of merit.

World-class New Zealand Awards Now in their eighth year, the World Class New Zealand Awards are one of the country’s most important accolades for outstanding individuals who have made major contributions to New Zealand’s success on the world stage. The annual red-carpet, black tie awards hosted by the Prime Minister are attended by 500 New Zealand business leaders.

Zimbabwe Achievers Awards The Zimbabwe Achievers Awards aim to recognize the commitment to excellence, creativity, innovation and dedication of Zimbabweans in the United Kingdom who have continued to expand on their talents and skill-set whilst celebrating their heritage. Categories for awards include: business woman of the year, business man of the year, sports personality of the year, event of the year, and outstanding contribution.

Governor-General’s Achievement Award Scheme (Jamaica) In 1991 the Governor-General’s Achievement Award Scheme was established to acknowledge and award the meaningful contribution of individuals at the community level. This Awards Scheme celebrates the success of these volunteers and highlights the impact of the award recipients on community and national life. There are three categories of awards under the Governor-General’s Achievement Award Scheme, one of which is the Governor-General’s Jamaican Diaspora Award for Excellence. This award was presented for the first time in 2008 and is given to three individuals who demonstrate exceptional service to Jamaica and communities in their countries of residence – United Kingdom, Canada and the United States of America. These awards are presented biennially to three individuals.

Remember forgotten diaspora members

It must be remembered that while there are a great number of high level influencers within the diaspora, there may also be vulnerable and forgotten members of the diaspora,
particularly older persons living in isolation, poverty and deprivation without the support of family and friends. Any diaspora policy must also provide for these members of the ‘Forgotten Diaspora’ – most of whom would have made provision for their homeland throughout their lives through substantial remittances or other means. An example of a diaspora initiative reflecting this need is The Ireland Funds philanthropic campaign entitled ‘The Forgotten Irish’ which is principally directed at those Irish migrants who went to Britain in the second half of the twentieth century. The majority left to find work, and sent billions of pounds home to their families. At the end of their working lives, many had the means to go home, however, many are still in Britain, often living in isolation, poverty and deprivation – without the support of friends or family. It has been estimated that there are in the region of 100,000 ‘forgotten Irish’ living in Britain with varying levels of need, ranging from homelessness and deprivation to social exclusion, or simply crippling loneliness. Furthermore, The Forgotten Irish Award was
created by the Funds to recognize the efforts made by a group or individual toward helping the vulnerable and elderly Irish community in the UK.

ZBIN has a solid chapter in Cape Town headed by Rodwell Mawoneke and  he is reachable on +27 78 695 9040. More Chapters for the forum being strengthened in Mozambique, Botswana, Zambia and Namibia.

Followers of our forum should have participated or seen the Long Cheng Challenge Post. On the post I asked the forum to assume they have been given a capital of $100 and you go to the popular Chinese shopping mall and u have to start a business. Tough task hey most of you struggled with the challenge because $100 is just too little for any meaningful business right?

I also carried out the challenge live when ZBIN was invited to carry out a business presentation at this popular local church. We simply asked congregants to go into pairs and come up with business opportunities they can pursue at LongCheng.
For minutes they struggled with the challenge, The Pastor, Mai Pastor…amongst the congregants were Bankers, Accountants, Economists, Teachers, Policemen, Students…I mean everyone. The good thing at the end of the minutes of ‘cracking heads’ they all came up with brilliant business proposals.

So what was the rationale of the challenge?

The rationale is twofold, the first is anyone can identify opportunities-everyone, no special skill required. If you are given a task to look for opportunities then you are not likely to come back empty handed! At this church we asked people to be in pairs which helped in the brainstorming sessions. So partnering with others can help you achieve more in identifying opportunities.

The second rationale, the main one is that we wanted to show the problem of the old model of investment. The old method is that whenever you think of business the first thing that comes to mind is Capital. Where are you going to find capital? If you are not going to find capital then that’s the end of story in your thinking. We had made it worse for members by asking them to confine themselves to $100. Had we asked them to look for opportunities without capital restrictions –chances are very high that they would have come up with more opportunities, even their innovation levels would certainly have been high.

To summarise it…the new way of investment is that of identifying opportunities first without capital worries, opportunity identification when not under pressure or restrictions allows a lot of innovation. After identifying opportunities then start finding how best to fund your ideas.

In funding it you may need to approach banks with business plans and given the prevailing environment, chances are high that your application will be turned down. You will not stop with banks-you explore more opportunities-how about venture capital? How about CrowdFunding? How about partnerships? ZBIN has helped members in getting partners…infact when we brainstormed on lack of access to capital we came up with a brilliant innovation of linking locals with the Diaspora!

We did not stop when we found opportunities but lacking capital, we kept on pushing and slowly the initiative is paying dividends. So the big point here is if you start investment by thinking of capital first then you are going to lose out on a lot of opportunities, your chances of stopping investing because of capital constraints are extremely high. The one who worries about capital last is the one most likely to succeed because he or she has no worries or restrictions limiting their thinking or innovation capacity.

Mwashuma Yaambo